Date Published 03 February 2023
The long anticipated Six Nations Rugby competition starts this weekend!
Wales and Ireland will kick off the 2023 Six Nations Championship when they meet at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday 4th February. The Calcutta Cup match between England and Scotland then follows at Twickenham. Rounding off the opening weekend's fixtures, Italy will face reigning champions France at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on Sunday afternoon.
Here are a few things to know about this annual rugby competition.
The tournament was not always played between 6 nations:
Originally, this tournament was called the Home Nations Championship between England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. A fully British tournament until the arrival of France in the competition in 1910 when the tournament became the Five Nations Championship. In 2000, with the first participation of Italy, the tournament changed its name again to become the Six Nations Championship.
France, favourite for 2023:
After winning its 10th Grand Slam last year, France is one of the favourites for 2023.
Guinness is the official sponsor:
Since 2019, the official sponsor has been Guinness who will remain the sponsor until 2024. The tournament officially takes the name "Guinness Six Nations".
The greatest number of victories goes to England and Wales:
England is the nation with the most titles with 39 wins, equalled by Wales in 2021. In third position in the standings is France with 256 wins. Ireland and Scotland tie with 22 wins each. Italy has never won this tournament.
The Grand Slam principle of rugby union:
A Grand Slam is a term used when a team wins all its matches at the Six Nations Championship. This phrase can be used for other competitions on the same system. The term Grand Slam is also used at the Roland Garros tennis tournament.
Matches are always played in the same stadiums:
With a few exceptions, all matches have been played in the same stadiums since the tournament began. They take place every year at these venues:
- Twickenham Stadium in London
- Stade de France in Saint-Denis
- Millennium Stadium in Cardiff
- Olympic Stadium in Rome
- Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh
- Aviva Stadium in Dublin
A tournament not only for men:
There has also been a female Six Nations Championship since 1996 as well as a junior version for under 20 years old, created in 2008. The women's tournament is played on the same dates against the same six nations.
Best performance:
England team player Jonny Wilkinson has the best individual performance in the history of the competition.